Charity football match to be held in memory of murdered Edinburgh mum Vikki Solomon
Charity event to be a celebration of Edinburgh mum’s life
A charity football match is to be held later this month in memory of murdered Edinburgh mother Vikki Soloman.
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Local charity football team Samba Foundation FC will play a match amongst themselves at Broxburn’s Albyn Park in West Lothian on Sunday, September 27 at 4pm, to raise money for a charity which has helped Vikki’s family during the darkest time of their lives.
Vikki, a 44-year-old aesthetician, was found with serious injuries at her East Craigs home on July 20 following reports of a disturbance, and was pronounced dead a short time later. The man accused of her murder, 46-year-old Lee Greenan, died at HMP Edinburgh on July 26.
With many of the Samba charity football team having worked with Vikki at the Scottish Gas offices at Marine Drive, the amateur footballers approached Vikki’s family regarding holding a charity match in her honour.
At the family’s request, all proceeds raised at that match and through this online fundraiser will be given to Richmond Hope, a charity which helps children deal with bereavement, and has been there for Vikki’s family in recent months.
Paul McPherson from Samba Foundation FC spoke about the upcoming match, which will be proceeded by a minute’s applause in memory of Vikki.
He said: “It’s just going to be all the guys from Samba, we are not playing anyone else. Quite a few of us knew Vikki so we thought it would be a good idea to have a match to raise money for a charity that has helped her family.
“I spoke to one of Vikki’s best friends, Nikki, and she spoke to the family, who thought it was a great idea and are fully behind this.
“We have set up a Just Giving page and are asking all the guys to pay to play, which will raise £2,000 right away to give us a good start. There will also be a bake sale, possibly a raffle, and donation buckets at the match.
“We just want to raise as much money as we can for Richmond Hope. It would be great to raise say £4,000 to give to the charity that has helped Vikki’s family so much.
“People can come along to watch the game for free, with fundraising taking place on the day and online. Its amazing what you can do with a charity football match, it’s unbelievable to think we have raised £60,000 in three years from playing 16 charity matches.
“It just goes to show what you can do with just a game of football with your mates. The family are happy we are doing this, and we are just hoping for a good game in memory of Vikki.”
Adding that the match is about more than raising money for charity, Paul said: “We are also looking at raising awareness of male violence against women, to help eradicate male violence towards females. Potentially do something with Women’s Aid, but we’ve not planned that part as yet.
“This is still a bit of a work in progress, something I have been speaking to local MSP Alex Cole-Hamilton about. He is leader of the Scottish Lib Dems and had been working with Vikki.”
Vikki’s friend of 20 years, Nikki Ruthven, 47, insists the charity match will be “fun, not doom and gloom”.
She said: “I’m fully supportive of this match. I think it’s great. I know what Samba does for charity, so I think it’s brilliant that they want to honour Vikki’s life. I’m all for it.
“I will be there on the day. I will actually be making all the cakes sold on the day to raise more funds.
“We want it to be fun, not doom and gloom. Vikki was such a joy, so we are hoping it wont be a sad day, just a lot of fun cheering the boys on at a good game of football.”
Speaking about missing her friend, who she met while working together at Scottish Gas, Nikki added: “She is very much missed. She was hilarious and liked to be in the limelight, and was just all about not taking life too seriously. But she was also driven by hard work and her boys.
“Vikki would have loved the fact that this charity football match is happening in her name, and that we are raising money for the charity that has supported her boys and so many other people during a family bereavement.
“Vikki was a law-changing, glass-ceiling-breaking aesthetician who, let’s face it, would no doubt have ended up in Parliament one day.
“She was smart, driven, hilarious and absolutely formidable, but above everything else, Vikki loved her family and friends with her whole heart. And at the very centre of her world were her boys.”